Pump



Dec. 2, 1930. R, w GUNN ET M 1,783,615

PUMP

Filed April 26. 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet l [2g 2. i295. jay. 4.

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2 Sheets-Sheet 2 PUMP R. w. GUNN ET AL Filed April 2s. "1927 Dec. 2,1930.

Patented Dec. 2, 1930 UNITED 4-s'riirl-:-sY

PATENT OFFICE ROBERT W. GUNN YAND wrLLs'IE A. s. THOMPSON, or LosANGELES, CALIFORNIA, ns sIGNons, BY ivrEsNE essIsNMENTs To nivrsconEEnIcK a EQUIPMENT COMPANY, or Vnos nNGELEs, cnnrroninn A ooErcnATIoNor oALIEOnNIA PUMP Application filed April 26,

tubing, the plunger either being lowered to position after the tubing isset or being sent down with the tubing and subsequently attached to thesucker rod line through the medium of automatic catches, and the secondtype being characterized as afull pump assembly, including barrel andplunger, adapted to be lowered bodily into the tubing after the latterhas been set. It is with the last type of pump that the presentinvention is concerned, the gene-ral features of advantage of this'typeover the other being well known to those skilled in the art.V

One of the` problems in connection with the installation of alock-bottom pump, is to accomplish a releasable holding connectionbetween the working barrel and the well tubing after the pump has beenlowered to position, for it will be readily understood that the barrelmust be held against longitudinal movement during the stroking oftheplunger. This holding connection must be a sure one, yet must be of anatureboth to be entered into easily and to be releasable when occasionarises for lifting the pump for inspection, replacement or repair.

There have been devised numerous types of releasable connections but, sofar as we are aware, they have all been of a more or less complicatednature involving the use of grapple fingers, expanding mandrels and thelike. In contradistinction to this, we have devised a connection`whichis of utmost simplicity and yet has all the features necessary torender it fully eicient in all phases of operation. It will readily beunderstood to those skilled in the art that the. reduction of workingparts to a minimum without in any way reducing `efficient operation,contributes in large measure to they efliciency of the pumpingoperation, taken as a whole.

1927. Serial No. 186,681.

Anothery problem met with in connection l with the operation of thistype of pump is the tendency of sand, from above, working downwardlybetween the barrel and tubing in such a manner that it tends to sand inthe barrel. That is, the sand works in between these members to such anextent that 'when occasion arises for lifting the barrel the packed sandresists such lifting, the resistance sometimes being such that allefforts to remove the barrel are without avail, and always greatlyhampering the lifting operation. We have overcome Vthis problem-bymakingit possible to secure a sand-tight joint between the tubing andupperend of the barrel, this joint being secured in a very simple thoughfully eiicient manner.

It may also beconsidered as a general object of the invention to providea pump of the character described. which is of both simt ple and sturdyconstruction throughout,

these features being well recognized as of lgreat importance.

A further object of the invention is to provide a means for frictionallyholding an inner tubular member against accidental movement, this meansconsisting of a bore and a gripping member secured to the inner tubularmember, this gripping member having one or more longitudinally extendingradially resilient arms adapted to have a friction-tight lit with saidbore.

Another object of the invention is to provide this design of holdingmeans in combination with a pump.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a means forholding an inner tubular member in an outer member, this means includinga supporting-means for supporting the inner member and a separatefriction-providing means for preventing the inner tubular member fromaccidental movement. V

Other objects and novel features of the invention will be made apparentin the following detailed description, reference being had to theaccompanying vdrawings in which f Fig. 1 shows .an embodiment of myinventom of the well;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged section, partly in elevation, on line 2--2 of Fig.1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged section, partly in elevation, on line 3-3 of Fig.1;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged section, partly in elevation, on line 4-4 of Fig.1;

Fig. 5 is a section on line 5-5 of Fig. 2; and.

Fig. 6 is a contracted, sectional view, partly in elevation, showing therelative position of parts ust before connection is made between thetubing and pump.

ln Fig. 1 we have designated generally at 10 usual tubing adapted to belowered into a woll preparatory to pumping oil therefrom. Secured to thelower-most end of the tube through coupling 11, is the tubular shell.12. lroadly, it will be understood that shell 12 may be considered apart or extension of the well tubing, particularly since it may be madeup of standard tubing stock and needs no special preparation exceptcuttingl to proper length. Hereinafter we will refer to section 12 as ashell in order more clearly to locate various elements, but we refer tothis section as a part ofthe tubing in the appended claims.

As a matter of convenience and economy, coupling 11 is also adapted tocooperate with a member carried by the 1Jump, gene-rally indicated at13, in a manner to seal off or form a fluid tight closure between thetubing and pump, though it will be understood this is not limitative onthe invention since the sealing` member may be carried by the tubingother than through coupling 11. Coupling 11 is shown in the form of a.sleeve having a central internal annular flange 14a which delines a bore14 of a diameter sufcient to pass, with clearance, the major extent ofpump 13. The upper end of flange 14a is counterbored to provide aconical seating face 16, or face 16 may be considered as defining aninwardly and downwardly tapering counter-bore 17.

The lower end of shell 12 carries a gripping member or tubular shoe 18,the connection between shell and shoe preferably being made throughscrew threads 19. Shoe 18 has an internal annular flange 20 which is ofconsiderable longitudinal extent and defines the relatively restrictedbore 21. The upper end of llange 2O is relieved at 22 to provide aflaring mouth 22a for bore 21, the curved or inclined walls definingthis flaring mouth providing means for guiding the end of the pump intobore 21.

Pump 13 includes working barrel 23 having at its upper end a cap member24, and at its lower end standing valve 25 and gripping member 26.

le have here shown member 24 as being made up in such a manner that ithas several functions, though it will be understood our invention,considered broadly, is not limited to a structure wherein this singlemember has all these functions. Member 24 is made up of the tubular,cylindrical body portion 27 having at its lower end a threaded portion28 whereby connection is made to barrel 23, an enlarged collar portion29, and a downwardly and inwardly tapering portion 30 between portions27 and 29, the portion 30 providing a conical, annular seating face 31which is complementary to seating face 16 with which. it is adapted toengage when the pump is fully assembled with the tubing.

This means just described constitutes the supporting-means of theinvention whereby he pump barrel is supported in the well tubing.

Extending upwardly from portion 29 are posts 32 which support head 33,the latter having an axial bore 34 adapted to take pump rod said rodbeing of such diameter that there is left ample annular clearance 36 betfe-en it and portion 27 to allow the free passage of oil from the barrel23 upwardly about the rod and outwardly between posts 32 to 'he interiorof tube 10 at a point above the pump. The top of head 33 presents anupwardly. facing shoulder 37, while the lower end of member 24 presentsa downwardly facing shoulder 38, shoulders 37 and 38 thus providinglongitudinally spaced and oppositely fac-ing abutments, the purpose ofwhich will be made apparent hereinafter. It will be seen that head 33provides a. guide member for centering the pump rod in the barrel, alsoserving as an out-board bearing to reduce the chance of the rod beingbent or sprung.

Connection between standing valve 25 and barrel 23 is made through ausual doubleended coupling 40, the tubular housing 41 of the standingvalve comprising, in effect, a downward continuation of the barrel.Couplinp; 40 has the usual axial bore 42 to allow the free passage offluid therethrough, and carries a usual bridge 43 spaced from the lowerend thereof to provide a stop for limiting the upward movement of thevalve ball or stopper 44. The seat 45, upon which ball 44 normallyrests, is held in position within sleeve 41 by the externally threadedextension 46 of gripping member 26, this extension having a bore 47which is in communication with the larger, threaded bore 48 whichextends through the body of member 26.

Gripping member 26 may be considered as a tube which is so fashionedthat it is oa pa ble of slight radial contraction and expansion. Thischaracteristic is given to it by providing radially spaced slits 49which extend through the wall of the member and longitudinally thereof.Preferably, though not necessarily, the slits stop short of the lower aswell as the upper end of the member, leaving the complete annulus 50 atthe lower cnd. The memberthen bein gmade of suitable metal, it will beseen that the central portion thereof is capable of slight radialcontraction, but

the inherent resiliency'of the metal-tends normally to hold the memberin its relatively radially expanden condition. It will be seen that themember maybe considered broadly as having a degree of radial resilience,it tending to spring to expanded position after it has been radiallycompressed or contracted. lt is also preferable that'the central portion5l of the member, through and beyond Vwhich slits 49 preferably extend,be of slightly greater diameter than are the adjoining portions 52 and53, and the lower portion 53 may be considered as a guide extremity orpilot for the gripping member. When in normal condition of radialexpansion the outside diameter of portion 51 is slightly greater thanthe inside diameter of the shoe bore 21.

Preferably, though not necessarily, a gas anchor 54 in the form of atube is threaded into member 26 at the upper end of its bore, as at55and extends downwardly below end 50, and, when the pump is fullywithin the tubing, below the end of the tubing. It will be evident thattubular member 26 has near its upper end an externally threaded portion46 and internal screw threads 55, slits 49 eX- tending downwardly fromthe point below the joint between the standing valve and the gas anchor.y

Vhile the plunger of the pump may be made up in any suitable form, wehave here shown it as including a plurality of usual cups 56 provided ontubular stem 56a which is secured through coupling 57 to the lower endof usual working valve 58 having a ball stopper 58a. The cups haveperipheral bearing with barrel 23 while the working valve 58 isconnected at 59 to the end of pump rod 35. The pump barrel and the gasanchor constitute the inner tubing of our invention.

The upper end of rod 35, where it entends above member 24, is connectedthrough coupling 35a to sucker rod 60; vand it will. be noted thatcoupling 352L presents a downwardly facing shoulder 60a. Thelongitudinal spacing of shoulder 60a from the upwardly facing shoulder61 presented by working valve 58 determines the extent of relativelongitudinal movement allowed between the barrel and plunger 55, thisextent of movement being sufliciently greater than the length of workingstroke of the plunger to permit full, unintercepted reciprocation of theplunger during normal pump actuation.

The tubing with its shoe 18 in place, is rst set within the well. Thefully assembled pump is then attached to the line of sucker rods andlowered in the usual manner, the pump during its descension being heldfrom dropping from the rods due to the fact that shoulder 38 of member24 rests upon shoulder 61 of valve 58. As soon as the enlarged portion51 of member 2G engages shoe 18, the pump comes to rest, while w65 thesucker rods and elements carried thereby continue downwardly untilshoulder (i0a of coupling 35L strikes portion of member 24. Theweight-of the sucker rod line is then imposed upon the pump and forcesthe latter downwardly. rllhe converging walls of bore 21 serve graduallyto compress radially the portion 51 of the gripping member until saidportion is of sufliciently small diameter to enter therestricted bore 21of the shoe.

The downwardly directed pressure then" It has been found that a force ofabout 1000 y pounds is sulicient to drive the ,gripping member home, andsince it takes a corresponding amount of upward pull to unseat thegripping member, itl will-be seen that the hold of" the shoe on saidmember issuilicient to prevent accidental longitudinal'displacement ofthe barrel, it thus being assured that there will be no movement of thebarrel with respect to the tubing during the normal stroking of the .y

plunger. y Y

The engagement of conical face 3,1-with conical-face 16 limits thedownward movelment of the plunger, the spacing of face 1G from the shoebeing suc-h that when faces 18 and 31 are in engagement the grippingmember 26 has been driven fully home. The complementary facesl 16 and 31provide a fluidtight .fit between' thertubing and the top of the pump,preventing leakage of fluid downwardly from above the pump. This conicalend engagement also is such that it prevents the entrance of sandbetween the tubing and barrel from above, and therefore prevents thepump from becoming sanded in. This conical end engagement also gives atype of jointwhich'is readily releasable when occasion arises forpulling the pump. i

When the plunger is raised through the sucker 'and pump rods, oil flowsthrough anchor 54,` lifts ball 44 and passes intothe bore of the barrel,while the column of oil above the closed working valve 58 is lifted andpasses out Vthe upper end of the barrel through bore 36 and betweenposts 32 to the tubing bore above the pump. On the subsequentdown-stroke of the plunger, ball 44 is seated, and the oil thereabove isforced through the bore of the plunger stem 56a into the barrel-borethereabove, lifting "stopper 58a of valve 58 in its passage. Y

It will be understood that when it becomes necessary or desirable topull the pump, the sucker rodsare moved upwardly unt-il valve 58 againengages shou1der38, whereupon com Cil tinued upward pull on the suckerrods pulls the member 26 longitudinally free from the restricted bore ofshoe 18, whereupon the gripping member radially expands to normalposition.

It has been found by actual practice that the hold between the tubingand pump is ample for the purpose and it will be readily appreciatedthat the sccurement of this gripping faculty without the use of grablingers or the like which call for comparative complication ofmechanism, is a feature of very considerable merit. It is also notablethat there is presented no mechanism which might become sanded in orotherwise effected in a manner tending` eifectually to resist wilfulwithdrawal of the pump.

Anchor 54, since it eXtends below the shell, may be utilized as adrive-out pin to free member 26 from the shoe after the shell and pumphave been fitted together in the factory for test or packing purposes.

It will be understood the dra-wings and description are to be consideredmerely as illustrative of and not restrictive on the broader claimsappended hereto, for various changes in design, structure andarrangements may be made without departing from the spirit and scope ofsaid claims.

We claim:

l. In combination: a well tubing; a tubular shoe on said well tubinghaving a bore of lesser diameter than said tubing, said bore havingplain uninterrupted side walls defining its portion of minimum diameter;a pump barrel; a gripping member on said barrel adapted to be forcedwith friction-tight fit into said bore, said member having a radiallyresilient portion engaging the plain side walls of said bore, saidmember having a longitudinal passage therethrough and adapted to receivein said passage a gas anchor, said gas anchor being connected with saidmember at its upper end so as to form a recess between said member andsaid gas anchor; and supporting means provided above said shoe tosupport said barrel within said well tubing.

2. In combination: a well tubing; a tubular shoe on said well tubinghaving a bore of lesser diameter than said tubing, said bore havingplain uninterrupted side walls defining its portion of minimum diameter;a pump barrel; a gripping member on said pump barrel adapted to beforced with friction-tight lit into said bore, said member having` aplurality of radially resilient arms adapted to engage the Vplain sidewalls of said bore and restrain said barrel from upward movement byfrictional engagement with said walls, said member having internalthreads at its upper end provided to receive a gas anchor so as to forma recess between said arms and said gas anchor; and supportlng meansprovided above said shoe to support said barrel within said tubing,comprising an annular face formed on said barrel adapted to engage anannular seat formed on said tubing, the engagement between said face andsaid seat forming a fluid-tight joint between said barrel and saidtubing above said shoe.

In witness that we claim the foregoing we have hereunto subscribed ournames this 11th day of April, 1927.

ROBERT lV. GUNN. VILLSIE A. S. THOMPSON.

